Locomotive sanding apparatus



Nov. 11, 1924. 1 1,515,571

' M. J. FOWLER LOCOMOT I VE SANDING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 9 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 @2/ 9.1. '5 60 sax =1 5 I 1/ v INVENTOR M01071 eff?) urZ e7" WITNESS: ATTORNEY M. J. FOWLER LOCOMOTIVE SANDING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 9. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WITNESS: ATTORNEY Patented Nev. raters,

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MACE J. WWLER, F BOANOKE, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR TO WHITE AMERICAN LOCOMO- ,tiasn gear e.

TI'VE SANDER COMPANY, INCO'RPORATED, OF ROANOKE, VIRGINIA, A 'CORPORA- area or vrnenvra.

Application filed February 9, 1923.

To all wit/omit may concern:

Be it known that I, MACK J. FOWLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Roanoke, in the county of, Roanoke and State of Virginia,have invented new and useful Improvements in Locomotive Sanding Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to sanding mechanisms for locomotives and has for an object the provision of means whereby sand may be supplied to the front or rear wheels "of a locomotive in regulated quantities.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a common controlling means whereby the sand may be either supplied to the front or rear wheels as desired and the supply controlled or regulated, means being also provided and controlled by the common controlling means for cleaning the supplymeans prior to the operation of the latter.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means for agitating the sand in the locomotive sand box and delivering said sand to the outlet openings of the box. A further object of the invention is the provision of means for accurately controlling the discharge of sand, that is, for discharging the sand in regulated quantities so as to provide for a minimum flow, an increased flow and to combine the amount of both flows to produce a maximum flow. With the above and other objects in view, the invention further includes the following novel features and details of construction, to be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the appended claim.

lln the drawings Figure l'is aside elevation of the invention applied to a locomotive, the latter being shown by dotted lines.

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional view through the sand box.

Figure? is an enlarged vertical sectional view through one of the sand nozzles, Figure 4 .is a top plan view of the engineers sander valve. v

Figure 5 is a top plan view of the valve with the outer casing removed.

Figure 6 is a side elevation of the valve.

Figure 7 is a sectional view on the line Serial no. eiaeaa 7-7 of Figure 4:, with the valve handle in a difierent position.

Figure 8 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken substantially at right an les to Figure'Z. V

igure 9 is a top plan view of the rotatable member of the valve;

Figure 10 is a transverse sectional view of the same.

Figure 11 is a detail elevation of the valve stem.

Figure 12 is apbottomplan view of the same.

Referring to the drawings in detail, wherein like characters of reference denote corresponding parts, the reference character 15 indicates the sand box of a. locomotive through which sand is dispensed upon opposite sides of the boiler through ports 16, the latter being preferably arranged in pairs.

These ports are in communication with front and rear ejector nozzles 17 through the medium of pipes 18, there being two of these nozzles upon each side of the locomotive boiler, although nozzles upon one side only vare shown.

numbered 1,388,811, granted to me August 23, 1921. It therefore comprises a sand inlet passage 19 whose upper end is in communication with the 'pipe 18, while communicating with the passage 19 near the bottom thereof are passages 20 and 21, the latter being of relatively large diameter. The passages 20 and 21 are relatively inclined and communicate with a common discharge passage 22, whose outer end is in communication with the inner end of a distributing pipe, the distributing pipe of the front nozzle 17 being indicated at 23,. while the rear distributing pipe is indicated at 24. The pipes 23 and 24 have their outer open ends ositioned adjacent the front and rear drivmg wheels of the locomotive and are spaced slightly from the rails. Extending within the" assages 19 of each of the valves are nozz cs 25 and 26, the former being concentrically aligned with the passage 20 while the latter occupies the same position with respect to the assage 21. These nozzles are designed to rect air under pressure into their respective passages as in my before mentioned patent and have air passages therein of different diameters. Inaddition, the nozzles 17. are provided with clean out passages 27, whose inner ends communicate with the discharge passage 22 immediately in advance of the passages 'and 21, while a plug 28 serves to normally close a clean out opening provided at the\lower end of the passage 19. i

All of the nozzles 17 are controlled by a common controlling element in the form of an engineers sander valve 29, the latter be ing positioned within the cab oft-he engine within convenient reach of the engineer.

The valve 29 comprises a casing which includes a lower section 30 and an upper section 31, the said sections be'ng removably connected by means of fastening devices 32.- The section 30 is provided with discharge ports preferably arranged in sets, one set being adapted to control the forward nozzles 17 and the other set the rear nozzles which supply sand to the rear distributing pipes 24. The, ports which communicate with the forward nozzles are indicated at C, L and H, while the ports which control the rear nozzles are indicated at C, L, and H. The port C is in communication with the passage 27 of the forward nozzle 17 by means of a pipe 33, while the ports L and H are in communication with the air nozzles 25 and 26 respectively to the forward nozzle 17 by means of pipes 34 and 35. Pipes 33, 34 and 35 establish communication between the respective ports C, L, and H, and the rear nozzle 17. The ejector nozzles 17 are duplicated u on opposite sides of the locomotive and t e forward nozzles 17 are connected by means of transverse pipes 36, 37

' and 37' which pipes connect the pipes upon opposite sides of the boiler, while the pipes 33, 34' and 35' of the rear nozzles 17 are connected by pipes 36, 38 and 40. The forward nozzles 17 at each side of the boiler may thus be simultaneously operated, while the rear nozzles may be likewise controlled. Thus, when the sander is operated, in a manner to be hereinafter described, communication may be established through the valve 29 and the discharge ports of either the forward or rear nozzles 17 upon opposite sides of the locomotive and sand simultaneously applied.

to either the front or rear driving--wheels.

An inlet port 41 is provided in the section,

30 of the casing of the valve 29 and this port may receive air under pressure through a suitable source from a pipe 42. .The ports C, L, H, C, L, and H, and the port 41 are in communication with a chamber 43, which communication may be cut off with all except the port 41 by means of a valve disk This disk is provided with a central port which reg'isters with the port 41 and which has extending laterally therefrom opemma through flange 48 which is disposed concentrfcally of the disk 44 and extending into and forming the top walls of the ports 46 is an oppositely beveled head 49 of a valve stem 50, the latter carrying a disk 51. The stem 50 extends upward througlran opening provided in the section 31 of the valve casing and this stem has secured thereon an operating handle 52. Through the engagement of the head 49 of the stem 50 with the opposite walls of the ports 46, the d sk 44 may be rotated to bring the port 47 intoregister with any one of the discharge ports.

The operating handle 52 carries a spring actuated latch 53 which is adapted to engage in one of a plurality of notches 54 or 55, a notch 54 being provided for each of the discharge ports, while the notches 55 provide means whereby the disk 44 may be positioned to establish communication between the chamber 43 and the ports 34: and 35 simultaneously, or between the chamber 43 and the ports 34' and 35' simultaneously. A washer 56 is interposed between the disk 51 and the inner face of the section 31 of the valve casing.

When it is desired to sand the forward drivers, the operating handle 52 is manipulated to bring the latch 53 into engagement with the notch over the discharge port C, whereupon air will be permitted to flow through the pipes 33 to the clean out pass'ages 27 of the rear nozzles upon opposite sides of the locomotive boiler. This will effect a blowing or cleaning out of the nozzles prior to sanding. The operating handle 52 may then be inoved to engage the latch 53' with the notch 55 to discharge air through both nozzles 25 and consequently discharge sand through both of the passages 20 and 21 of each of the forward nozzles. This will bring the elongated port 47 into register with the ports H and Lat the'same time, so that a double sanding is effected. In like manner, both the ports H and L may be made to register wlth the port 47 and a dou-- f ble sanding will be efi'ected through the rear nozzles.

Byoperating the handle in a reverse di-- rection, the ports 0', L, or H may be 5 opened after the manner just described, so that sand will be sup lied tqthe rear drivers. In the event of failure of the sand to flow 'from the box to the nozzles, whether due to e en the caking of the sand, or to the character of the sand box bottom, there is provided a means for agitating and breaking up the sand cakes and for moving the sand over the sand box outlets. This means is in the form of a pipe 57 which extends diametrically through the sand box 15 and has its opposite end connected to the opposite ends of a curved pipe 58. I The ipe 57 is provided with oppositely disposed discharge, nozzles r 59, while the pipe 58 is connected to one end of an air supply pipe 60, the latter being controlled by a valve 61. valve 61, the air pressure passes out through the nozzles 59 and breaks up any cakes that mayhave formed in the sand and at the same time disposes the entire body of sand in the direction of the sand box openings 16..

The invention is susceptible of various changes in its form proportions and minor details of constructlon and the right is herein reserved to make such changes as prop- By opening this erly fall within the scope of the appended claim. I

Having described the invention what is claimed 1s:

An engineers sander valve comprising a casing having a plurality of discharge ports arranged in groups, a common inlet port, a valve chamber, a rotatable disk having a centrally raised portion with inwardly inclined ports in constant registration with the common inlet port, said disk also having an auxiliary port arranged to be brought into and out of registration with any of the discharge orts, a bevel-headed v-alve stem keyed in t e centrally raised portion of the disk and forming parts of said inclined ports, and means whereby the disk may be operated to selectively establish communication between the inlet port and any of the outlet ports.

In testimony whereof I afix my signature. MACK J.- FOWLER. 

